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Friday, May 30, 2014

After showcasing his "Tournée" in 2010, the Brussels Film Festival is opening its 2014 edition with Mathieu Amalric's "Chambre Bleue" (Blue Room). The film premiered at Cannes and is being sold under the logline, "In a room, a man and a woman live their passion in secret. Their desire
is intense. But one day Julien has to explain himself to the police". It's a deep and disturbing exploration of a man facing his intricate relationships with women.

The Brussels Film Festival (June 6-14) built its reputation on first and second features by European directors, and now claims to show the best of European cinema. Located in the impressive Art Deco Flagey building in Brussels, it features exclusive screenings (a total of 70), open-air shows, encounters and masterclasses.

Foremost amongst these will be a session with Alan Parker, who is also the subject of a big-screen retrospective.

Notable films in competition include "The Enemy Within", "Miss Violence", "The Double" and "Los Angeles". The festival closes with Hossein Amini's thriller "The Two Faces of January".

UPDATE: Two screenwriting masterclasses have been announced. On Tuesday June 10, Pierre Salvadori (Dans la cour") will talk about a recurrent theme in his work: depression. Using extracts of his films such as "Les apprentis" and "Après vous", he will talk about character weaknesses as a source of comedy, the state of comedy and the virtue of lying.

Pascal Bonitzer

In a different register, Pascal Bonitzer (La belle noiseuese) will talk about the link between intimacy and politics, seen through a comedian's eyes, and what happens when the grotesque meets the tragic. Friday June 13 from 4-6pm.